The army will get younger: a former MP from ‘Svoboda’ proposed lowering the mobilization age limit

In Ukraine, as the war continues, the age threshold for mobilization should gradually be lowered.

This information reported according to former Member of Parliament from the “Svoboda” party, Yuriy Syrotiuk.

He proposed that every six months of the war, the upper age limit for mobilization should be systematically reduced.

“For example, starting in 2025, the ranks of the Defense Forces could begin recruiting individuals starting at 24 years old. If the high-intensity war continues into 2025, by July, 23-year-olds should be called up. This would give young men a clearer sense of their future prospects, and the army would gradually get younger,” Syrotiuk wrote.

He criticized calls to demobilize those over 50 and to avoid conscripting young men aged 18-25 as “dangerous and criminal populism.” Syrotiuk believes the war in Ukraine is “existential,” meaning there is no choice but to continue fighting.

Previously, Roman Kostenko, the Secretary of the Defense Committee of the Verkhovna Rada, stated that Ukrainian authorities may need to lower the mobilization age if Russia announces a new wave of mobilization.

Meanwhile, the Cabinet of Ministers submitted a bill to the Rada that would require 17-year-olds to register either through the “Reserve+” system or by reporting to territorial recruitment centers.